It's time to make banking boring again!

It's time to make banking boring again!

Dec. 10, 2013 9:39 am

By Thom Hartmann A...

Regulators want to start making banking boring again. Today, five different regulatory agencies are expected to adopt the Volcker Rule, which would redraw a line between regular banking and Wall Street gambling. The rule is one of the centerpieces of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform Act, and it is seen as a litmus test for the overall strength of the financial reform law. By rebuilding the wall between banking and investing, regulators hope to reduce the risk of another financial meltdown fueled by Wall Street speculation.

The banksters have been fighting against the implementation of the Volcker Rule, but for once, the regulators appear to have gotten their way. This new rule includes some very important changes, like banning banks from trading for their own benefit, requiring hedged risks to be “specific” and “identifiable,” and ending the practice of reward CEOs for “prohibited proprietary trading.” In other words, it won't be so easy for banksters to make trillions by placing bets against bets against bets, and they won't be able to reward CEOs for illegal activity.

But, Wall Street is already searching for loopholes in the proposed law, and they will continue to fight this regulation in court. And, the Volcker Rule is still a far cry from the banking regulations that existed before the repeal of Glass-Steagall. By passing this rule, regulators are proving that they want real Wall Street reform, but they're not going far enough to prevent another financial meltdown.

Nearly two years after the 2008 financial crash, Congress passed Dodd-Frank to reign in the banksters, but two-thirds of those regulations have not yet been enacted. To protect the American people, and prevent another banking crash, we need to rebuild the wall between banking and gambling. The Volcker Rule is a start, but we need to bring back Glass-Steagall, and make banking a safe and boring business once again.

"If the people only understood the rank injustice of our money and banking system, there would be a revolution before morning.".......Andrew Jackson....... it's still, "If only," Andy.

I'm afraid no matter what regulations get put in place, Mr Potter and his moneyed friends will still find a way to steal massive amounts of wealth from our global humanity. "Revolution before morning," might in fact be the only way to fix this endless injustice.

Quote Jayemal:Yes, the push for Glass-Steagall needs to continue; it is essential. Bravo to Sens. Warren and Brown for pushing this.

Thom Hartmann and Jayemal ~ I must concur with the emotions conveyed by both of your sentiments; and, as such, hate to be the little pin that bursts both of your bubbles; BUT--and as you can see this is a mighty big BUT--need I remind you both that if the TPP passes next week all these noble efforts are merely smoke and mirrors that proportionally amount to two chefs frantically bailing water during the sinking of the Titanic. As Palindromedary mentioned several posts ago all these gestures are a day late and a dollar short; and, therefore are suspect as simply meant to throw us a phony bone to keep us quiet while the Trans Pacific PirateShip sets sails with its booty. Don't celebrate anything prematurely based on this puppet show conducted by master deceivers and manipulators of the truth and public opinion. Right now more than ever we need to stay on course--Sink The Trans Pacific PirateShip before it leaves dock!!

Jayamal, 10-K and Marc, I agree with every word. You guys are all spot-on.

Tonight on Democracy Now, as I listened to Obama's speech at Mandala's memorial in South Africa, I could not get the TPP out of my mind. Marc is absolutely right; if the TPP prevails, these flimsy bank regulations will be more of a joke than they already are. I think perhaps it's just the offering of a few crumbs to placate us. I'll even go so far as to question the relevance of Glass-Steagall in the shadows of TPP, since this so-called "trade" deal stands to erase our soverignty as a nation. Perhaps another letter to our president is in order:

Dear President Obama,

Tonight while I listened to your speech in South Africa, I couldn't help but wonder what Mandela would have to say about the TPP, and your efforts to push the TPP via Fast Track. Do you think Mandela envisioned a world where corporations were king, where national sovereignty and democracy became a relic of the past? The amount of unnecessary suffering and disempowerment you will have imposed on the people of this country - and much of the world - shall have tragic, far-reaching consequences if the TPP prevails. Is this the kind of change Mandela would believe in? Are these the values he stood for?

What do you think Mandala would say about the use of drones against innocent civilians, or the arbitrary targeting of male civilians as "enemy combatants"? Do you think Mandela would approve of your hit lists and assassinations, or indefinite detentions without trial? Are these the values Mandela stood for?

How would you compare your legacy to Nelson Mandela's? With three years left to your second term, perhaps it is time you step back and take inventory.

Quote Aliceinwonderland:What do you think Mandela would say about the use of drones against innocent civilians, or the arbitrary targeting of male civilians as "enemy combatants"? Do you think Mandela would approve of your hit lists and assassinations, or indefinite detentions without trial? Are these the values Mandela stood for?

Really! Well said! Obama isn't worthy of Mandela! What a hypocrite Obama is. Just another windbag politician hijacking people more virtuous.

The PBS NewsHour did a segment last night on the passing of the Volcker Rule. The banking big-wig kept using the sad tired Rethuglican lines/lies of hurting small business, our customers...how people won't get loans, how smaller banks will be hurt--you know, bull that isn't true about the Rule, which will effect only the largest banks, which he kept repeating even after the other guest called him out.

If the big banks really cared about Main Street customers, our 401Ks would be performing much better, which they failed to do even during the boom times of the 90s. Now, we, 50 and over, are receiving letters to get us to contribute MORE to our 401k to "catch up," which is code for "we want MORE of your money, sheeple, so we can make even MORE money from you and give you NOTHING in return."

Needless to say, we won't be sending any more money down that rabbithole.

Hurray for the Volcker Rule, but bringing back Glass-Stiegal would be better.

This was my first impression as well , so you have to wonder why he gave that speech ! Is it all smoke and mirrors ?

The way I see it is no one does anything wrong given there model of the world .What this means is Obama,s masters condone War and using violence to solve the worlds problems or America,s problems be this with the tool of economics or the military .

But we know violence only creates more violence and this has been the message of many enlightened teachers Mandela being one of the m as was Martin Luther King .You would have thought that our world leaders might have got these messages by now ? Because this is what works in creating lasting peace on our small and precious Earth .One must assume that the problem is Humanity,s mixed up beliefs about life and who and what we are doing here .Mandela set an example of what forgiveness means and working together to produce the highest outcomes for all people,s .He set a standard and only asked for others to follow his example .

What more can one do by being the change they want to see in the world .The world needs new leaders to step up to the mark because the present one,s live in fear and seek only power for themselves .

You need to know this... Support for Donald Trump's campaign is still growing nationally, and in early primary states, but he's not just gaining support in early primary states. A new poll from Florida shows that Trump is leading Jeb by 6 percentage points - and he's leading Rubio by 16 points.

"No one communicates more thoughtfully or effectively on the radio airwaves than Thom Hartmann. He gets inside the arguments and helps people to think them through—to understand how to respond when they’re talking about public issues with coworkers, neighbors, and friends. This book explores some of the key perspectives behind his approach, teaching us not just how to find the facts, but to talk about what they mean in a way that people will hear."

—Paul Loeb, author of Soul of a Citizen

From Cracking the Code:

"Thom Hartmann ought to be bronzed. His new book sets off from the same high plane as the last and offers explicit tools and how-to advice that will allow you to see, hear, and feel propaganda when it's directed at you and use the same techniques to refute it. His book would make a deaf-mute a better communicator. I want him on my reading table every day, and if you try one of his books, so will you."

—Peter Coyote, actor and author of Sleeping Where I Fall

From Screwed:

"The powers that be are running roughshod over the powers that OUGHT to be. Hartmann tells us what went wrong — and what you and I can do to help set American right again."

—Jim Hightower, National Radio Commentator, Writer, Public Speaker, and author of the bestselling Thieves in High Places